Haiti's Manic Groove

I've really been enjoying this late 70's album by Haiti's Ibo Combo. It's an ongoing mystery to me as to why this and similar (so-called Konpa, or Compas) music from Haiti hasn't caught on, at least with the beat-heads and "deep-crate diggers" of the world. I reckon it's just a matter of time, and have long mulled over producing a compilation to speed the process.




Many uptempo Konpa tunes have a breathless, manic quality, just one of the elements that sets this style of music apart from other styles originating in the African diaspora. Ibo Combo's "Engendré" has the usual exciting mix of hot rhythms, horns, choppy guitar, and exciting vocals, solo and in chorus, but the album is particularly well done and quite distinctive. It features an unusual number obviously inspired by the Spaghetti Western soundtracks of Ennio Morricone, and also a cover of a tune by Ti Paris, a brilliant Haitian folk musician .

The CD is available from antilles-mizik. Ibo Combo's "Café" is another excellent recording, available from the same shop.

An Irish Lament

"Lament" is the title of this 90's Real World concept album, and it consists of mournful contributions from the cream of Irish traditional musicians. The intention of the disc is to "commemorate in music the dead of the violence in Northern Ireland", and it is a worthy, beautiful effort.




There's a mix of vocal and instrumental music here. The singing is mostly in Gaelic, but any lack of verbal understanding is immaterial - there's a language here that transcends words. A wide range of instruments lends a very pleasant variety to the disc: accordion, fiddle, pipes, whistle, harp, etc., all superbly played. Contributing musicians include Davy Spillane, Christy Moore, Sean Potts (The Chieftains), Paddy Glackin (Bothy Band), and Tony McMahon.

I've been listening to this disc a lot recently - it's really quite special.

Pitch-black Comedy from Denmark

"Adam's Apples" is a story about belief and redemption set in a small Danish town. Adam, a thuggish, taciturn convict, is paroled to a church community run by an eccentric but charismatic preacher (Mads Mikkelsen, now of Bond fame). He is at first horrified by the seeming hypocrisy of the motley community, made up mostly of ex-cons like himself, and he takes pleasure in showing up his fellows. But subsequent events radically challenge his view of the world.


I found the film fresh, original and thought-provoking. It's well-shot and the acting is flawless. The mode of humour really is quite dark - which is no doubt a warning for some, and a recommendation for others!

Film Movement's DVD transfer is super - a great picture with no noticeable compression artefacts.

Public Service Announcement for Lovers of Brazilian Music

Heads up! A bunch of very nice CDs of Brazilian music, published by What Music, are available right now at ridiculous clearance prices via various Amazon UK Marketplace Sellers. Ridiculous as in from less than £1 each... and, no, there is no catch (except that shipping to the UK will add ~ £1.20 to the price of each CD - more to other destinations, of course).




Go to the Amazon.co.uk homepage, mouse over "Music, DVD & Games", then click on "Music". Click on "Advanced Search". In the Label field, enter "What Music", then click on "Search now". When you get the search results, sort by "Price: Low to High", and behold.

I can recommend the following:

"O Som do Black Rio" - Dom Mita (£0.20 and up!)
Sweet revival of the classic 70's Brazilian Soul sound, the titular Sound of Black Rio.

"Gosto Tanto" - Edson & Tita Lobo
Modern acoustic Bossa Nova by two accomplished veterans of the genre, with some special guests. Lovely.



Also, "Ana Mazzotti", "Bambu" - Marcos Ariel, "Semuta" (all groovy fusion) and (from Argentina) "Chivo Borraro Quarteto en Vivo" (jazz).

Try before you buy... check out sound samples for each album at the What Music website: http://www.whatmusic.com.

Don't delay, these clearance deals will not last forever.

Poetry and Mayhem, Korean Style

Kim Ji-woon's "A Bittersweet Life" is a superb, modern film noir. Gripping from start to finish, it intersperses a stream of suspense and ultra-violence with glimpses of poetry which ultimately hold the film together and provide meaning. The overall effect is highly memorable, not least due to the film's rich visual beauty.

Tartan's DVD transfer is recommendable.

Audio Ginei* Pig? Try This!

This CD recommendation is for adventurous listeners, or for those already turned on to the beauty of traditional or classical Asian vocal music. Each song in this compilation is a recital of poetry, sung in a highly melismatic style, with a "tightened throat" intonation that gave the genre, Ginei, its name. There is very little rhythmic propulsion to the tunes - the voices conjure an effect like fragrant smoke rising from a brazier, hanging lightly in the air. The compiled singers are beautifully accompanied by instruments that vary from track to track, ranging from traditional Japanese instruments to a tasteful solo organ(!)).


Most of the notes are in Japanese, though there is a brief paragraph in English on the Ginei genre (much appreciated by this gaijin). The recordings are high-quality mono, which leads me to believe that they were made in the late 50's / early 60's - I thus assume that this is a compilation of historical Ginei recordings, and the superb quality suggests a prime period for the genre.

Sound samples and CD available at HMV Japan: http://www.hmv.co.jp/product/detail/1937103

^* Yes, I know how to spell Guinea, thanks. Jeez!

Great Japanese Cinema, Part 1 of Many

I saw a lot of films in 2008, and none impressed me more than this one: "Hara Kiri" (a.k.a. "Harakiri") (1963), by Masaki Kobayashi.

Hara Kiri is set in 17th Century Japan: the consolidation of power within the Shogunate is causing many clans to disintegrate, leaving many former Samurai doomed to subsist as desperate Ronin. The film is a dark, stirring, and far-reaching commentary on society and societal institutions: hypocrisy, shallowness, and abuse of power are powerfully addressed.

The acting is superb, with a tremendous lead performance from Tatsuya Nakadai, one of the greatest of Japanese actors and a long-time collaborator with Akira Kurosawa (e.g. Ran; Kagemusha). The music, composed by Toru Takemitsu, is particularly effective and yet another reason to see this film.

The film scooped the Cannes Special Jury Prize, which (at the time of the award) was the second most important award of the Cannes Film Festival.

I recommend Criterion's DVD, which is typically excellent, and comes with many extras.